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Each year, September is National Preparedness Month. The month raises awareness of the importance to be prepared, now and throughout the year, for the types of natural and man-made disasters that could affect where we live, work, go to school, worship, and visit.
The historic 2017 hurricane season affected 47 million people, or roughly 15 percent of the U.S. population. Tens of thousands of people mobilized to aid in the disaster response.
Everyone can take steps to be prepared, including:
- Make a Family Emergency Communication Plan. Have all members of your household keep a fillable plan card in their wallet, purse or backpack.
- Get to know your neighbors; check with each other before and after a disaster and include neighbors in your emergency plan.
- Sign up for emergency alerts to receive life-saving information from your state and local officials.
- Learn your evacuation zone and have an evacuation plan.
-Have regular household meetings to review and practice your plan.
Gather supplies now. You may have to leave your home immediately. As you gather supplies, keep in mind each person’s specific needs, including medication. Do not forget the needs of your pets. While we can’t prevent unexpected emergencies, each of us can increase our preparedness before disaster strikes. For more information, go to www.ready.gov/september.
FEMA’s
Emergency Management Institute (EMI) hosts “One Link, One Bridge, Many Voices” e-Forums every Wednesday from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. ET. EMI e-Forums
are one-hour, moderated webinar panel discussions where EMI and the emergency management community
discuss matters of interest related to emergency management and national
preparedness with whole-community partners and peers. Through these forums, participants share
their experiences in an informal exchange of ideas.
EMI e-Forums are free of charge
and available to anyone who wishes to participate.
September EMI e-Forums:
- 9/12: Integrated Public Alert and
Warning System (IPAWS) Test Sept. 20
- 9/19: Hispanic and Latino Americans in Emergency Management
Participation link:
https://fema.connectsolutions.com/emieforums
Conference call-in:
800-320-4330, PIN 107622
Questions: https://training.fema.gov/contactus/sendcomment.aspx
U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen announced final allocations of $345 million for six Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 DHS competitive preparedness grant programs.
These allocations, and the more than $1.3 billion in non-competitive grant funding announced by DHS in June, total more than $1.6 billion in FY 2018 to assist states, urban areas, tribal and territorial governments, nonprofit agencies, and the private sector with their preparedness efforts. Since 2002, DHS has awarded more than $50 billion to these partners.
Preparedness grants strengthen our nation’s ability to prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks, major disasters, and other emergencies in support of the National Preparedness Goal and the National Preparedness System. The FY 2018 preparedness grants focus on the nation’s highest risk areas. Consistent with previous grant guidance, dedicated funding is provided for law enforcement and terrorism prevention activities throughout the country to prepare for, prevent, and respond to pre-operational activity and other crimes that are precursors or indicators of terrorist activity.
Competitive Preparedness Grant Program Allocations for Fiscal Year 2018:
Homeland Security Grant Program - More than $1 billion.
Emergency Management Performance Grant Program - More than $350 million.
Tribal Homeland Security Grant Program - $10 million.
Nonprofit Security Grant Program - -$60 million ($50 million is available for nonprofit organizations
located within one of the 32 FY 2018 Urban Areas Security Initiative
(UASI) eligible urban areas and $10 million for nonprofit organizations
located outside of an FY 2018 UASI-eligible urban area).
Intercity Passenger Rail - Amtrak Program - $10 million.
Port Security Grant Program - $100 million.
Transit Security Grant Program - $88 million.
Intercity Bus Security Grant Program - $2 million.
Further information on DHS’s preparedness grant programs is available at www.dhs.gov and http://www.fema.gov/grants.
FEMA’s
Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) Division announces the membership
application for the HMA External Stakeholder Working Group (ESWG) is now
open. Formed in 2015, this group helps increase engagement and
transparency with non-federal partners in hazard mitigation. The purpose of the
ESWG is to gain insight, share information, and understand HMA priorities and
issues from external stakeholders.
FEMA encourages external stakeholders to
share their perspectives on HMA priorities, issues, and program resources. The
ESWG serves as a bridge between FEMA HMA staff and state, local, tribal, and
territory stakeholders. Members act as points of contact for other external
stakeholders by gathering inputs, requests, ideas, and suggestions for HMA.
HMA
is seeking applications for the following vacant membership positions:
- Two
FEMA HMA Regional staff representatives
- One
State / Territory representative
- One
Local / Regional representative
- One
Federally Recognized Tribal representative
Interested
applicants should complete and submit an application via email to FEMA-HMA-GRANTS-POLICY@fema.dhs.gov.
The application is available for download at www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/126699.
Applications are due by Sept. 28, 2018. Feel free to pass this
message along to others who may also be interested and would like to submit an
application.
Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grants for Fiscal Year 2018 Webinars: Evacuation and Shelter in Place. FEMA will host a webinar
about the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grants for Fiscal Year 2018.There are two sessions
available: at 2 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, Sept. 12, and noon EDT Thursday Sept. 13. ET. Both may be accessed via the
Adobe Connect and phone conference line. Adobe Connect: https://fema.connectsolutions.com/nofo18/. Phone:
1-800-320-4330 Code: 338559#
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